I’m at the playground, and the question crosses my mind: “I wonder if she smokes weed?”
Yes, I’m at the playground — making enjoyable small talk with another mommy while our kiddos discover the sandbox, and I can’t help but think, “I wonder if she smokes weed?”
She is easy to talk to, and she seems on the level. I’m happy making friends with her regardless, but my mind still speculates.
“I wonder if she smokes weed?”
Call it my quest: I want to find this mythical mom who openly offers to smoke a bowl on her back porch while our children explore the backyard. Is that her at the aquarium? Or over there in the produce section at the grocery? I even thought I spotted her in line at Starbucks a few times.
But ultimately I don’t know because it is so damn hard to weave into conversation seamlessly. “We should meet up sometime for a playdate,” I would say to her, casually when the kids were in their own world. “Should I bring a joint?”
I could just ask her and take the awkward silence if she’s not into it. Now that recreational pot is being sold in stores, they say it’s not all that unlike alcohol in Colorado. Surely no mommy would shame me for inviting her over for mimosas.
Colorado is progressive in its stance on cannabis, and the stoner moms and dads of Denver should follow suit. Let’s all get out from under our rocks. It is not illegal in Colorado to possess, smoke or BUY weed anymore! So why do we still feel less worthy as partaking parents?
Maybe it has to do with society making us into a caricature. Marijuana users are shown as dopey-eyed dumb-dumbs who never get off the couch. Most of us know that we are not that character, but hearing it repeatedly still has an effect on a person’s subconscious.
But times are changing. We in Colorado are in the unique position to redefine what it means to be a pot-smoking parent. Only we can expose the rich and intelligent community that lies beneath the lingering smoke. We will shift the paradigm. It’s up to us to prove that we are not what is commonly depicted of us. We are men and women of all ages, all backgrounds and all economic classes.
We shouldn’t be afraid to say that we smoke or vaporize or enjoy edibles. However, until we are able to feel our strength in numbers, it’s going to be as difficult as it’s always been to be open and vocal.
I say we start a dialogue. I’m a self-professed Chatty Cathy, and I’m honest to a fault. But that doesn’t mean I know everything. I really want to learn from you. I think we have a lot to offer each other.
In this column, I’ll discuss topics and concerns I’ve addressed being a mother and a marijuana user. If you want, you can give me feedback. Feel free to bounce cannabis- and parenting-related things off me — perhaps questions you’ve been too nervous to bring up with others. I won’t promise I’ll have the right answer or that there even is one. I will promise that I’ll give you a thoughtful and authentic reply from someone who is confronting the delicate balance of being a parent and a pothead.
